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Thursday, March 11, 2010

Late last month, the Parliament of Kyrgyzstan voted - by an overwhelming margin - to terminate their lease to the United States of Manas Air Base, and required the Americans to vacate the base within six months. The vote followed closely on the heels of an earlier announcement that Russia would be providing over $2 billion in financial aid to Kyrgyzstan. Manas is a crucial air base for operations in and around Afghanistan, and U.S. officials remain hopeful that there may still be room for negotiation. The majority of Kyrgyzstan's population appears to have little concern about the closure, instead focusing on their own struggles to get by, as migrant work in Russia has recently evaporated, and jobs at home in Kyrgyzstan are hard to come by. News photos from Kyrgyzstan are few and far between - that said, here is a collection of recent scenes from festivals, rural life, and Manas Air Base in Kyrgyzstan. (25 photos total)

A Kazakh hunter flies his golden eagle during a hunting festival "Solburun" in the village of Bokonbayevo, Kyrgyzstan, some 300km outside Bishkek on October 18, 2008. (VYACHESLAV OSELEDKO/AFP/Getty Images)

When you look at these photos, do you think death and derelict nightmare or do you think urban explorers’ dream? Explorers dared security guards and guard dogs to investigate and to photograph the decaying, otherwise forgotten, and rotten bedlam of massive Hellingly Asylum. Maybe these adventurers are just insane, or maybe they wanted to sift through the eerie and unspeakable beauty of the Victorian hospital complex. Hellingly Asylum even had an electrified railway, so let’s go off the rails on a crazy train to explore the decomposing mental hospital since it is at this moment being torn down. Here’s an ode to abandoned Hellingly Mental Asylum with 33 creepy photos. R.I.P.

Ode to Hellingly Asylum

Hellingly Hospital was designed by asylum architect George Thomas Hine and was one of the most advanced asylum designs ever constructed. Hellingly Asylum opened its doors in 1903 and then closed them permanently in 1994. Most of the psychiatric hospital is to be replaced by new housing. Good luck with that to those of you who think you will live peacefully on a land soaked with trauma.

Hellingly Asylum, Sussex

Patients and staff all lived in red brick buildings, villas of this gigantic asylum. Men and women lived in separate wings. There were big windows to let in as much light as possible. Even as “advanced” as it was thought to be, Hellingly was also a place where women who had children out of wedlock were incarcerated. (Unless otherwise credited, all images are from Howzey, urban explorer and photographer extraordinaire.)

The decadent ballroom is only a tiny fraction of an asylum tagged, explored, smashed, trashed and a target of numerous arson attacks. In the theater, facing the stage, near the front right door, there was a hatch where some urban explorers were brave enough to crawl around the creepy underground passageways.

For over 20 years, abandoned Hellingly has been dying, fading, and peeling, but there is a lovely quality that makes you shudder about the ruination. Some explorers have reported hearing unexplained noises up and down the many corridors. Of course, old buildings make noises. The hallway above is one that was in “better” condition than many others.

Besides having a farm, train, water tower, clothing store, boiler room, chapel, dentist office and so many others, there was also a Hellingly Hair Salon. This room has been heavily vandalized and photographed about as much too.

Arson left its smoky and charred touch to the kitchen and central stores, the administration block, medical officer’s residences and much more. There is substantial fire damage to the above Hellingly Hospital corridor.

There is something utterly creepy about seeing a child’s wheelchair in the decaying mental hospital. According to county asylum records, Hellingly Asylum had a special building just for “mentally defective” children. Of course, this was back in a time when people were locked away in isolation, people with mental illness or an illness in which the family did not want to deal.

Outside one of the roasted toasty corridors is one of the many padded cells rooms. Other “advanced” facility care therapeutics included shock treatments.

Hellingly Asylum even had its own morgue and the above body fridge. On the grounds, there could be found “body trolleys” for transporting human remains into this chamber of the dead.

Some folks call it vandalism and others call it art, but many graffiti artists have left their mark up and down the hallways, rooms, stairways, and spooky corners of abandoned Hellingly Asylum. The top two photographs showcase works by Snub.

Graffiti artists can have a great sense humor, placing the semi-undressed woman carefully above the bathtub. The rest of the black and white portions in this picture are a product of merging Hellingly Asylum in its glory with its decrepit and tagged state now.

Given its sad state of decay for 26 years, nature was trying to reclaim Hellingly. The paint had peeled, the ceiling had crumbled in places, and the glass had been smashed out of windows, exposing the once grand Victorian architecture to be a victim of the elements. If this urban explorer’s paradise was not being destroyed, eventually nature would have swallowed the abandoned asylum whole. Perhaps the asylum ghosts were acting at night as gardeners?

The top photo shows what was once a service area. Walkers, foam, mattresses, and clothing are scattered over the moss. The “Yellow Chair” in the bottom picture is in about the same state as abandoned Hellingly Asylum. Yet there is something infinitely sad about this decrepit hospital being demolished by wrecking crews for new construction.

If the walls could talk within Hellingly, could you imagine the tales you might hear? Would the building scream in terror at what has happened within those walls? If you want to stay updated with the progress of destruction and demolition, Hellingly Asylum has a Facebook page. Some former patients, some children during their stay at Hellingly, report recalling a distinctive smell and plenty of scary memories from this place.

Since the asylum has been abandoned and left to slowly rot, exposure to the weather was not the only thing hammering on Hellingly. Signs of vandalism were almost everywhere. In theory, that is why security guards were hired. But there was something scarier than guard dogs and ghosts within Hellingly . . . asbestos.

In its prime, Hellingly Asylum was a beautiful example of Victorian architecture. Just the same, that might not be overly comforting when having to bath in one of the many bathtubs along with many others in the “public” restrooms.

Goodbye Hellingly Hospital, where both good and bad happened. The huge complex will soon be nothing more than written stories and urban explorers’ documented photographs. Some people do not enjoy visiting the dentist. Add that with all that transpired at this asylum and it might send a shiver up your spine. Would you have gone down those spooky stairs, ready to bark at the moon and take on anything? Despite unexplained noises in the deserted and decaying asylum, would you have kept going if you ran into the ghosts in the lower right photo? Actually it is a trick of the trees outside and the moonlight . . . or is it? We salute urban adventurers in general and howzey specifically this time for sharing his pictures with us.

20th Century Fox TV and Fox appear ready to end the long-running hit after this season, the show's eighth.

Studio and network execs declined comment -- but it's believed that the final decision will be made in the next day or two. Move is not a huge surprise, but still reps the end of an era for Fox.

"24" helped usher in Fox's ratings surge in the 2000s, as the franchise -- along with "American Idol" and "House," among other series -- led the network to the No. 1 spot in the adults 18-49 demo.

But the cost of producing "24" has continued to increase, while ratings have dipped. A one-time critical darling, "24" has also received its share of knocks from critics this season.

The studio is said to be considering shopping "24" to other nets -- but given the thriller's age and pricetag, it's believed interest from other outlets will be limited.

Yet even as the bell tolls for "24" in primetime, the franchise is far from dead. Sutherland and the "24" team have been keen on adapting the show as a feature film, and have made major strides in recent months toward making that long-term goal a reality.

Twentieth Century Fox's film side recently hired scribe Billy Ray ("State of Play," "Flightplan") to pen the script for the feature version (Daily Variety, Feb. 8.)

Ray's pitch, which takes Jack Bauer to Europe, was a hit with Fox execs and producers of the high-concept television series.

Script is said to have come through "24" star Sutherland, who's also an exec producer on the series.

Such a move into the features world was considered impossible while production continued on the TV series -- given that "24" takes much of the year to produce, with its feature-like shooting schedule. But with the show expected to end its run, the ability to focus on a movie could now finally be in sight.

"24" was created by Robert Cochran and Joel Surnow, while exec producer Howard Gordon runs the show through his Real Time Prods. banner.

Brian Grazer's Imagine Entertainment produces the show along with 20th Century Fox TV.

Sutherland has starred throughout all eight seasons as Jack Bauer, a federal agent and member of the Los Angeles Counter Terrorist Unit (and who has saved the world several times over). "24" made noise for its real time format, in which all 24 episodes take place as consecutive hours in the same day.

Although it was developed before the attacks of 9/11, the show, which bowed Nov. 6, 2001, in many ways began to mirror the changed world, given real-life fears over terrorism and debates over torture methods. Skein's depiction of an African American president was seen as a ground-breaking precursor to the 2008 election of Barack Obama.

The show has won the Emmy and the Golden Globe awards for drama, while Sutherland has scored both an Emmy and a Globe for actor. "24" has also received Emmy Awards for writing and directing; last year, Cherry Jones won an Emmy for supporting actress in a drama.

It is one of the most agonising decisions any parent could have to make.

Conjoined twins Emma and Taylor Bailey, three, will die if they are not separated because too much strain is being put on their shared heart.

But the odds that even one would survive the complex operation are extremely slim.

Dilemma: Emma and Taylor Bailey share a single heart, but must be separated if they are to survive

No twins born with one heart have ever been separated successfully.

Now doctors say that time is running out for their parents to make their choice.

Emma and Taylor, who are fused from the breastbone to the belly button, have already defied experts once.

Family time: The three-year-old twins with their mother Mandy, who is also mother two four other children

They were expected to live for only 15 minutes because it was thought that their heart would become overworked as soon as they took their first breath.

But doctors say they must be separated in the next year or two to have any chance of survival.

The girls also share a liver. For the surgery to succeed, it is likely that they will both need heart transplants and one will need a new liver.

Miracle: When the girls were born, doctors said they would live for only a few minutes

Their American mother Mandy Bailey, 32, who lives in Arizona, said: 'There's a tiny window of time for a separation. We have to get it completely right, if we wait too long then the operation cannot go ahead.

'In the next year, life for all of us will be drastically different.

'We know we have to make difficult choices. We understand the risks. But we also understand the outcome if we don't do anything.'

Independent: The girls move around using a specially-adapted walker and are able to feed themselves

She said that when the girls were born, all her husband Tor, a 34-yearold builder, had hoped for was to hear them cry just once.

'We were told they would live for minutes and then they would suffocate,' she added. 'The girls were handed to him straight away and they simultaneously inhaled and quietly cried. It was a magical sound.'

The twins' future was still uncertain when they were well enough to be discharged from hospital. They were given oxygen and medication to strengthen their lungs and have astonished doctors with their progress.

They can feed themselves and are learning to get about using a special walker.

Mrs Bailey said: 'The girls are becoming different people and developing adorable little traits. Taylor is the bossy one.

'Emma is a bit crazy, she's always pulling funny faces.' The Baileys have four other children aged 11, nine, seven and two. Emma and Taylor have already had several smaller heart operations.

One in June last year involved placing a band around Emma's aorta to reduce her blood pressure.

Seattle Children's Hospital, which is overseeing the twins' care, does not want to discuss the treatment.

Mrs Bailey said: 'We realise what a great miracle it is for our daughters to be alive and happy. They are a blessing for our family.'

To find out more visit the Two Sisters One Heart Foundation (www.twosistersoneheart.com).

I don’t have a preference for motion controls, especially the idea that they will some how save the gaming industry. Watching Nintendo go from being doubted, and counted out in the early parts of this generation. It’s amazing to see how they are in the lead, but it’s not lost on me why they are. I could go into detail about all of the reasons. Instead I’ll stick with the one that counts the most. Motion control brought in more gamers, and found a way to do it successfully. For other companies no matter the industry outside of Apple, and Nintendo find it hard to do introduce new products/services. Let alone, not lose their shirt, and make a profit. Even in losing game cycles Nintendo finds ways to still win. Where Nintendo drops the ball is in graduating their game audience. They could careless. This is why Sony’s Jack Move…I mean Move controller could be the end of Nintendo’s reign with the Wii.

Sony’s Jack Move(slang term for taking, or stealing) is plain, and simple. Get out of third place, keep the momentum of 2009 going, and don’t let Microsoft’s Xbox 360 get ahead anymore than it is. By any means necessary. Sony’s Jack Move is smart because titles like Madworld from Sega, a great game that could not find a home in the Wii. Titles that are so ground breaking on the platform become afterthoughts. “The Conduit” being another example of this. It’s not Sony’s fault that Nintendo thought ahead, and was shortsighted at the same time. Is there any reason that the Wii couldn’t be in HD? No…I was huge proponent of them making it HD. I knew full well as soon as I saw the Wiimote that it would impact gaming in a great way. Nintendo has always found ways to innovate control interfacing, and the Wiimote for me made so much sense. Yet, the tried, and true Nintendo dummy move was to hate on all things next generation. Turning their nose up to HDTV, Online gaming, and all things that would have put the Wii in an untouchable place. Nintendo had the chance to have the hardcore, and casual gamer…They missed the chance.

This generation is not like the last. The one in which Sony’s PS2 smacked the competition around like Tyson in his prime. As Microsoft spent money to find an identity, Nintendo had to figure out what they will become for the future. Sony’s lead with the PS2 was astronomical. There was no touching them. With the PS3 this generation Sony’s in third place, but it’s a bit decieving. Sure the Wii is head by a considerable margin, but there’s more than enough time to catch Nintendo. But, let’s forget the PS3 catching up with their second motion controller (Sixaxis being the first, and a failure). Rather the focus now is whether or not Sony can be competitive because there’s no reason to not own a PS3 right now. Yet, there is no reason to own a Wii compared to a PS3 now. Unless you are a hardcore Nintendo fan, already own a Wii then why? If you think this theory is some kind of hater concoction I made for you, then explain to me why the Wii has started to stall in sales? Nintendo is aware of this. So now they are focusing on games, but casuals don’t play the Wii consistently enough for software to be critical mass for Nintendo to rely on. Again, games like Madworld will thrive on the PS3 because of that they add to the mix of exclusives that Sony has been churning out on the platform. Each title more stellar than the last.

Sony’s Move controller is a godsend for developers already involved in Wii development. With Sony making it an easy development environment this allows developers to really maximize the PS3. At the same time the innovations developers have made on the Wii don’t have to go to waste. You add in option tools such as 3d gaming, online playability with PSN, and now the Sony PS3 is in a position to be the visible bully. Sure the achilles hill for Sony has been their marketing this generation. At the same time no one can tell me those Kevin Butler VP of Sony games commercials aren’t making the PS3 an attractive choice for gamers. In fact they are downright hilarious.

Sony’s Jack Move is smart if they aim straight at the heart of Nintendo. Going up against the Xbox 360 doesn’t matter much. With worldwide sales Sony just needs to focus on creating the games, and expanding their service in a much more defined manner. Make sure every game that comes out of their studio is standard top shelf. Invite developers to push on their end. They don’t have to spend money on exclusives, just on development tools, and sending out engineers. Go have a conversation with Crytek for Crysis 2. Push a bit harder Sony. We know full well that Nintendo won’t.

With all that said it’s not clear how well Sony’s motion controller move will move in the market. Coming in under $100 the whole package has to be attractive to reach critical mass. Microsoft’s motion control is so different, and applicable beyond the games that its really about how creative, and diligent Microsoft is with the roll out. Microsoft is a dangerous company when they have a plan, and are focused. This gaming generation with the Xbox 360 is testament to that. Hate all you want, but the Xbox 360 is kicking ass. So if Natal is the unknown element, then Microsoft may find the alchemy to make true magic with it. Right now though, Sony’s jack move, with the move controller unveil at GDC is the front-runner for next gen motion control gaming. Nintendo better figure something out…Asap

Universal shot out the new trailer for "Robin Hood" today, and I'm happy to say that it's better than the previous one.

The trailer moves away from the feeling that it is another Ridley Scott epic retread and focuses on story and character, giving some limelight to the thespians. Very few actors are able to give rousing speeches like Russell Crowe, and here it looks like we may have several.

It still seems to be very serious, which is not a bad thing, but part of the reason why the Robin Hood legend took hold was not only the idea of one man rebelling against authority but the way it poked fun at the unjust king. Meaning the whole thing, on a storytelling level, was mirthful. The trailer shows a glimmer of that in one scene where King John, putting up a wanted poster, asks for a nail and gets an arrow instead.

Have you ever thought that Goofy was just a little bit too goofy? Wonder where Woody Woodpecker gets all that energy? Keep reading to take a look at 10 children’s characters who were obviously on drugs:1 Scooby Doo and Shaggy Marijuana

Scooby and Shaggy were clearly the two slackers of Mystery, Inc. Add in the fact that they always had the munchies, were way too paranoid about everything and drove around in the back of a van, and it’s pretty safe to say that these two were ripping bong hits every chance they got. Of course, there’s also the infamous recurring scene in which the Mystery Machine drives away and smoke curiously billows out the back. Scoobie DOOBIE Doo!

2 Woody Woodpecker Cocaine

The hyper-speed energy of Woody Woodpecker is just too boundless and frenetic to be the mannerisms of a completely sober cartoon character. I mean, you can’t watch an episode of this classic cartoon – what with Woody bouncing off the walls, eyes all big and dilated – and not start to catch onto the fact that he was snorting something up that beak of his.

3 The Caterpillar From Alice in Wonderland Opium

The Caterpillar from Alice in Wonderland smokes out of a hookah – case closed. Further ammo – at one point he exhales and a cloud of smoke in the shape of a Chinese dragon comes out of his mouth. Oh, and he also informs Alice that she can grow and shrink through the use of mushrooms. Sounds like the guy knows his way around a drug party.

Note: The Caterpillar is probably just the clearest example of someone getting stoned in Wonderland. The Mad Hatter and Cheshire Cat were clearly on something as well, and Tweedledum and Tweedledee were probably huffing paint out in those woods.

4 Goofy Glue

Speaking of huffing, Goofy was just a little too loopy to suffer from low IQ alone. With his patented awkward walk and remarkable ability to fall flat on his ass, those motor skills of his were obviously impaired in some way. My bet is on rubber cement, but I could also see this dopey Mickey sidekick sniffing on a Sharpie or sucking nitrous from a red balloon.

5 Chester Cheetah Marijuana

Forget the old cats vs. dog feud – Chester Cheetah would be great friends with Scooby Doo. If this cartoon feline ever took off those patented sunglasses of his, it’s probably fair to say we’d see a couple of dry, bloodshot eyes. And of course, anyone who loves Cheetos as much as that Cheetah has got to have a pretty healthy level of THC circulating through the body.

6 Popeye Steroids

Spinach makes you strong? Yeah, right – not that fast at least. Symptoms of steroid use include sudden growth in muscles, increased aggression and feelings of invincibility. Sound familiar? Oh yeah, another symptom is poor decision making – which would explain why ol’ Popeye was dating that whiny string bean with the wobbly arms – Olive Oyl.

7 Pepe Le Pew Ecstasy

How do you spell love. Well, when you love everything as intensely as Pepe Le Pew, the answer is probably M-D-M-A. Combine his overt affection with the fact that he couldn’t stop rubbing his hands all over the ladies, and it makes a pretty strong case that Pepe Le Pew was hitting up the underground rave scene in his off time.

8 Animal PCP

Symptoms of PCP include erratic behavior, poor speech, mania and a blank stare facial expression. Animal possesses all of these traits. Angel dust also grants the user extreme strength. If you recall, the enthusiastic drummer of Dr. Teeth and the Electric Mayhem actually had to be CHAINED to his drum set because he became so violent. Oh, and he’s a musician – a profession that virtually requires you to be a drug addict.

9 Yakko, Wakko and Dot LSD

The odd behavior of the three main characters from Animaniacs might be the result of many different types of drugs. However, when you take into account clues such as Wakko attempting to eat scene backgrounds and Yakko believing he’s the king of a made-up country named Anvilania, the use of hallucinogenics becomes more apparent. Clearly, only such grand illusions could be caused by LSD.

10 Pippi Longstocking Marijuana

Here’s one more pothead for the books. If that picture doesn’t sell you, Pippi’s love for all things fun, along with her disdain for authority figures and public schooling should serve to further bolster her hippie tendencies. She also loves telling long stories that consist of nothing but pure nonsense or ridiculousness. Pippi’s curious super strength (she can lift a horse over her head with one hand) also suggests that she may be lacing those joints with PCP.

Ian M. Sherwin Giclée

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All you art collectors out there. Here is a chance to get a Giclee copy of some of Ian M Sherwin work. Ian is planning on doing a whole series of Marblehead, Massachusetts paintings.His work is amazing.